Newbie from UK

[Blackbird]

I lived in Northamptonshire, Dad lived in Potton near Sandy.

Moggy - if you're going to Rotorua to see geothermal activity, then skip Rotorua itself. The best geothermal spots are on the Rotorua -Taupo highway about half an hour south of Rotorua - here's one: http://www.geyserland.co.nz/ However, there is a good carving institute and some Maori cultural shows at the Rotorua geothermal site in town.

[El Dopa]

At the moment erm, dare I say it we are now considering hiring a camper van as we want to see all the rural bits and don't want to be tied down to a schedule of booked hotels.

You probably wouldn't be tied down, as you're coming off season. You only really need to book stuff in advance around Christmas. Otherwise getting yourselves a bit organised and booking stuff a day or two in advance is generally good enough. A camper van is only going to be useful if you want to park up for the night somewhere remote.

We did the camper van thing last year, and with hindsight we should have done it in hotels and a car.

My folks are over here at the moment, doing the south island. They're in a car and booking hotels as they go. It seems to be working out OK for them.

[moggy]

Just down the road, I'm in Milton Keynes. Small world, innit.

I worked at Bletchley one summer, used to commute there on my little Kwak KC100, still never managed to find my way round the roundabouts though